Brooke Shields’ Daughter First Learned Of Her Mother’s Sexual Assault While Watching ‘Pretty Baby’ Doc: “I Couldn’t Even Get Through It”

Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields didn’t just let the world in on what Brooke Shields experienced as a young star on the rise — her daughters learned something harrowing, as well.

Shields sat down with her daughters Rowan Henchy and Grier Henchy for an interview with People, in which her youngest, Grier, revealed that she was unaware of her mother being sexually assaulted in her 20s by a Hollywood exec — who has not been identified — prior to watching the documentary. In fact, Grier said she “was learning about things the same time that the world was and [she] just took it more deeply and personally.”

“I couldn’t even get through it,” she added.

Shields admitted that she “didn’t prepare” Grier for this startling revelation, deeming it “a miscommunication” on her part.

“I had explained it was an exploration of sexualization of women in my industry but I was naively thinking that because we had such a solid, healthy, fairly normal existence and I’m not completely damaged that she would say, ‘Wow you’ve come through a lot but look where we are today,'” she shared.

Shields also noted that she told her daughter that there was a “happy ending.” But Grier responded, “I will never be okay with thinking something bad happened to you.”

“She ended up missing the happy part,” Shields claimed. “She felt helpless, and just as a mom, we make mistakes and sometimes we make assumptions.”

Shields acknowledged the “odd situation” for her children to see the documentary and to “see your parents as a public figure that other people have opinions on is just an odd situation,” but also pointed out that she’s “learned a lot by listening to them.”

While speaking with DECIDER about her Netflix movie Mother of the Bride, Shields said that “it was hard not to have any expectations” for the doc ahead of its release, and highlighted that she “was surprised” by her reaction to the project after she viewed it.

“I think the reaction has been very diverse. You get the people who go, ‘Oh my god, I forgot you did all that Broadway,’ and ‘I forgot you were funny.’ Then other people are saying, ‘Oh my god, I can’t believe you lived through all that,'” she explained. “Everybody has their own point of connection that they have. I was pleasantly surprised with that, because it’s so not one-note.”

Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields is streaming on Hulu.

If you or someone you know needs to reach out about sexual abuse or assault, RAINN is available 24/7 at 800-656-HOPE (4673), or online at RAINN.org.